Margarine package



Nov. 27, 1951 B. T. HENSGEN MARGARINE PACKAGE Filed Sept. 8, 1948JNVENTOR @erna/a Z' 7? Patented Nov. 27, 1951 MARGARINE PACKAGE Harvey,Ill., assignor to Bernard T. Hensgen,

Swift & Company, Chicago, Ill.,

of Illinois a. corporation Application September 8, 1948, Serial No.48,201

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to the packaging of margarine, and moreparticularly to an improved flexible container in which margarine may bedistributed together with a coloring ingredient and in which the twomaterials may subsequently be mixed by the consumer to color themargarine.

It is on object of this invention to provide an improved package forfacilitating the mixing of margarine with a coloring dye.

It is another object of this invention to provide a container in whichthe coloring ingredient is held separated from the margarine duringnormal distribution in the retail trade.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved packagewherein the margarine may be brought into contact with the coloringmaterial.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved package forautomatically bringing the margarine into contact with the coloringmaterial upon squeezing of the package.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved packagefor distributing margarine and a coloring ingredient in paste form.

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved packagethat is filled in such a way that the folds may be opened up uponmanipulation of the margarine in the package to bring it and thecoloring ingredient into contact.

Other objects will appear from the specification below.

In the drawingavFigure 1 shows a top plan view of the margarine packagewith the color in the end of the package, and the end closed and looselyfolded over a print of margarine.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of the package of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the package as shown in Figure 2 afterit has been squeezed to drive the margarine into the end fold tostraighten out the walls of the package to bring the margarine and thepaste coloring ingredient into contact.

As is well known. margarine is usually distributed in the retail tradeas an uncolored product, and a packet containing dye is placed in thesame package and held apart from the margarine in order that theconsumer may color the margarine yellow if desired. Recently it has beenproposed to place the margarine and the coloring ingredient in the samesealed, airtight bag, the arrangement being such that the consumer mayrelease the coloring and mix the margarine and the dye together bysquishing them around together in the sealed package. f

In commercial use, this prior art structure takes the form of a flexibletransparent container to hold margarine, and the color is held enclosedas a liquid solution in a gelatin bean. The bean is xed against theinside of the wall and healed margarine package by means of a perforatedpatch, and when the consumer desires to color the margarine, the bean ispinched to burst it. After the liquid is released from the bean, it maybe worked out through the perforated patch to be brought in contact withthe margarine. Thereafter the margarine and the coloring are squishedaround together in the bag or container until the margarine acquires auniform color.

Other arrangements have been proposed for holding a powder form of thedye in such-a package, but such means have not met with any considerablecommercial success. In any event, however, where either a powder or aliquid coloring dye has been used in the past, the consumer has beenrequired-to yperform a special manipulation of the package to releasethe dye in order to bring it in contact with the margarine so that itmay be subsequently mixed therewith.

After the margarine has been colored in a flexible bag, as abovedescribed, it may be shaped and the margarine hardened before thepackage is opened. l

This invention is an improvement upon inargarine packages of thiscolor-mixing type, and provides a bag having dimensions somewhat largerthan the print of margarine to be placed within the bag. Preferably thecontainer is designed to confine a rectangularly shaped onepound printof margarine with a portion of the container extending beyond the end ofthe print wherein a coloring dye may be confined. The coloringingredient may be disposed within the .extending end portion of thepackage, and then that portion is folded over upon itself to hold thecoloring dye separate from the margarine during shipment.

When it is desired to color the margarine in such a package, it is onlynecessary to squeezex the plastic mass of margarine to force it into thefolded end of the package. As the margarine oozes into the folds, thewall of the bag is straightened out to bring the margarine and thecoloring ingredient into contact. Thereafter the margarine may becolored by squishing the dye and the margarine together within thesealed flexible package.

Referring more particularly to the drawings for a preferred showing ofthis invention, it will be seen that a bag I0 is provided to receive 3 aprint of margarine Il. The bag III may be 'formed for any material thatis flexible and substantially impervious to air. Preferably it ismade'of a transparent plastic sheet and may be constructed by sealingtwo sheets,v I2 'and I 3, of such a material together around theirperimetersas indicated at I 4. When the margarine and the coloringingredient are placed between the sheets, all of the excess air may beremoved and thesealing of the package completed.

The print of margarine II, as above stated, is somewhat smaller than thespace which is provided within the sealed bag I0, and as best seen inFigure 2, the extending end portion of the bag may be folded back overthe end of the margarine contained in the bag, about an axis I5.Preferably the end portion is again folded back upon itself about anaxis I6, and a line of colo:- ing dye I'I is confined between the wallsI2 and I3 at about the very outermost edge of the foldedover portion. Inthis manner the coloring dye is conned within the package, and becauseof the folding of the end portion of the package, it is held spaced fromthe margarine print so that the margine cannot come in contact with thedye under the conditions encounteredv during normal distribution.

The coloring material I 1 is preferably prepared in the form of a pastewhereby it maybe applied to one of the wall elements of the bag in theform of a thin line. When the consistency of the paste is selected sothat the paste is not substantially fluid, the paste remains neatly inplace and cannot be dislodged upon shaking or compression of the foldedportion of the package. Such a paste may be prepared by dissolving aliquid or a powder form of dye in a small portion of the oils usuallyfound in margarine. This procedure of wetting the dye with a smallquantity of the oils has the further advantage of speeding up theultimate coloring or mixing process.

With a bag constructed as above described, it is necessary only tosqueeze the margarine confined between the sealed walls I2 and I3 toforce the margarine past folds I5 and I6 to straighten out the wall ofthe bag whereby the package assumes a shape about like that shown inFigure 3. The margarine and the paste coloring dye may then be squishedaround Within the package until the margarine attains a uniform color.v

When the bag is constructed in the manner described above, it beingsomewhat larger than the print of margarine, ample room is provided inwhich to manipulate the margarine therein to bring the various phases ofthe mass of margarine and coloring together whereby the dye may bequickly and uniformly spread throughout the entire mass.

The paste form of dye is particularly adapted to this type of package,since a dry form of dye would tend to dust and, perhaps, come in contactwith the margarine to color a portion of it. This would be objectionableand requires special constructions and handling during distribution. Itis obvious that a liquid dye could not be placed within the containerwithout providing a means 4 to hold the liquid out of contact with themargarine in the package. In order to ensure complete separation asbetween a dry form of dye and a liquid dye, a positive separation in thecontainer must be provided to avoid any possibility of coloring themargarine during shipment.

When a paste form of coloring dye is used, however, the paste is notdusty and cannot migrate from its position in the package until thepackageis opened up, as shown in Figure 3. The use of a paste form ofcoloring dye eliminates the necessity for providing a positiveseparation as between the dye and the margarine as has been necessary inpackaging margarine with a dry form of dye or a liquid-type dye.

In the use of this package. as above described, the margarine andcoloring dye are brought into contact by merely squeezing the plasticmargarine material. This automatically opens the folds which hold thecoloring ingredient separate from the margarine, and no othermanipulation is needed than that normally performed in squishing themargarine in the package. This simplies the work which must be done bythe consumer, and yet a quite effective separation as between themargarine and the dye is provided.

While in the preferred form of the invention the f olds have been shownas provided at the end of the package, it is obvious that a fold alongthe side could be made which would serve the same function. It isprobable that other modifications of this invention will occur to thoseskilled in the art, which will fall within the scope of the followingclaim.

I claim:

An improved package in which to distribute and thereafter colormargarine, comprising a iiexible sealed bag to hold the margarine; saidbag being formed of two sheets sealed together adjacent their periphery;a print of margarine in said bag; said print being substantially smallerin volume than the volume of the bag; the two sheets forming one end ofsaid bag being twice folded back; and a paste form of coloring dyedisposed within the bag between the last fold and the adjacent sealconnecting the sheets at said end of the bag whereby the dye is held outof contact with the margarine until it is desired to color it, whereuponit is necessary to merely squeeze the margarine in the bag to cause saidwall to unfold in order to place the margarine and paste in contact witheach other so that. with further squishing of the margarine and coloringdye together, the margarine acquires a uniform color.

BERNARD T. HENSGEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,137,243 Hegman Nov. 22, 19382,347,640 Peters May 2, 1944 2,454,420 Adler et al. Nov. 23, 1948Certificate of Correction Patent No. 2,576,834 November 27, 1951 BERNARDT. HENSGEN It is hereby certified that error appears in the printedspecification of the above numbered patent requiring correction asfollows:

Column 2, line 5, for and healed read of the sealed; column 3, line 25 afor margine read margamfw;

and that the said Letters Patent should be read as corrected above, sothat, the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oice.

Signed and sealed this 4th day of March, A. D. 1952.

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant Uommzsez'oner of Patents.

